hollow in the old chestnut tree."

Sammy Jay pretended to feel very badly indeed, and in his
sweetest voice, for his voice was very sweet in those days, he
offered to help Happy Jack try to catch the thief who had stolen
the store of nuts from the hollow in the old chestnut tree.

Together they went down cross the Green Meadows asking every one
whom they met if they had seen the thief who had stolen Happy
Jack's store of nuts from the hollow in the old chestnut tree.
All the Merry Little Breezes joined in the search, and soon every
one who lived in the Green Meadows or in the wood knew that some
one had stolen all of Happy Jack Squirrel's store of nuts from
the hollow in the old chestnut tree. And because every one liked
Happy Jack, every one felt very sorry indeed for him.

The next morning all the Merry Little Breezes of Old Mother West
Wind were turned out of the big bag into the Green Meadows very
early indeed, for they had a lot of errands to do. All over the
Green Meadows they hurried, all through the wood, up and down the
Laughing Brook and all around the Smiling Pool, inviting
everybody to meet at the Great Pine on the hill at nine o'clock
to form a committee of the whole--to try to find the thief who
stole Happy Jack's nuts from the hollow in the old chestnut tree.

And because every one liked Happy Jack every one went to the
Great Pine on the hill--Reddy Fox, Bobby Coon, Jimmy Skunk
Striped Chipmunk, who is Happy Jack's cousin you know, Billy
Mink, Little Joe Otter, Jerry Muskrat, Hooty the Owl, who was
almost too sleepy to keep his eyes open, Blacky the Crow, Johnny